Rhythm of the Heart
by Fleursevmione
Summary: Severus has gone away, and Hermione is broken. She misses listening to Severus' heartbeats; the only thing that made her feel safe. When will he return to put her back together? Harry hopes it's soon. He hates to see his best friend emotionally drained.
1. Heartbeats

Hey, readers!

This is my second ff, and for now, I think it will be a oneshot, but if you guys really like it, maybe I could make it work into a multi-chapter story(: maybe?

Well, tell me what you guys think; I absolutely hope you like it!

A/N: I own none of the characters; they're all J.K. Rowling's(:

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><p>She couldn't sleep.<p>

Two days had already gone by since he and Moody had left for Order business.

He was not lying beside her to hold her in his arms like he did most nights, to tell her everything would be alright; she didn't feel very safe without those small things he did for her. She did not feel safe without listening to his heart; the steady rhythm of the beating organ calmed her to no end. It made her feel safe, and she knew he liked when she felt like that with him.

It was probably around three thirty in the morning now, and by the looks of outside through the window, it was raining hard.

_Was he out in the rain_? She did not even want to think that.

So, she did the most logical thing, she got out of bed and left her room; making her way down the screeching stairs quietly to not wake those who could actually sleep. Once on the lower floor, the curly headed girl walked over to the long couch and sat down, pulling her knees up to her chest, and hugging herself. She would wait for him, like yesterday.

She did not understand how everyone could be asleep when they knew he was out there.

Hermione could not understand how they could all sleep while she was up and worried, and he was out there cold and _alone_.

_Why couldn't anyone else have gone, why had they let him go? Why was he not here yet? Had something happen, had something gone wrong? _All those questions were mechanizing through Hermione's head and she couldn't help but wonder if any of those questions created the scenario Severus was in at this moment.

She hoped he was safe. She wanted him to be safe.

More than anything, the girl wanted him home _now._

She wanted him in her arms; to be sleeping peacefully beside him in their room upstairs. She had not wanted him to go, but he had no choice, and she had tried to stop him. Hermione did not want all this weight on him; it wasn't his to bear_._

The fine hairs in her arms were standing up from how cold the house felt at nights downstairs; that's how it always was at 12 Grimmauld Place, and she felt even colder when he was away.

Was he thinking of her _right now_; of when he would come back home to her?

She was so wrapped up in her thoughts, that she completed missed the raven, headed boy looking at her from the dark, unlit kitchen table area.

Harry had heard someone coming down, and had silently made his way to the kitchen doorway to see who it was, when he had seen Hermione, he returned to the table, but did not stay there for much long.

He couldn't.

His best friend was not happy; she was alone, and grieving.

Harry just stood in the doorway again, and tried to imagine how he would feel if it was Ginny out there and not Severus Snape. He wouldn't have allowed it; he wouldn't have left his girl go. Not in times like these. If it was him waiting, he would have been in tears by now, and completely terrified of her not coming back. Is that how Hermione was feeling? Was his best friend falling apart from the inside?

He shook his head and walked towards her, but she did not look up; she was just staring away to the wall; she did not even acknowledge his presence, and that really scared Harry.

He whispered her name softly, wanting her to look up.

"Hermione"

But she did not look up, she did not even answer; if was more as if she couldn't do any of that, as if she was lost. That made him worry more; it hurt him to see her like that.

Her face seemed as if it was rid of any emotions; although, her eyes seemed different, they seemed filled of darkness, one that was not there before. The man, her best friend, bent down in front of her, pulled her arms around his neck and slid his hands under her knees; after having her secure in his arms, head tucked in under his chin, he started walking up the stairs and into her room, closing the door with his foot.

Once inside, he approached her bed and laid her down in it. He sat on the edge of the bed, and reached to grab her hand, and she let him hold her hand in his; allowing him to squeeze it gently. Although she let him do this, she still did not look at him; she didn't speak.

"Hermione, I'm here."

Her best friend told her quietly, as he rubbed his thumb over the back of her hand, and his other hand reached to tuck a brown curl behind her ear. She looked up at him, and her eyes grew tense. Harry knew she wanted to talk, but she just did not know how to speak out. This was Hermione; the strong girl who tried to never cry in public, who tried to remain calm and be logic, but right now she was being less than logic by shutting herself, and not allowing anyone in to help her; to be there for her.

She suddenly shut her eyes, and turned her head away from her best friend; turning to the window, where rain drops could be seen falling down to Earth while softly hitting the glass window.

Without letting go of her hand, Harry got inside the bed, and crawled around her small body to end up lying behind her; where he hugged her. She opened her eyes and turned to look at him.

"Do you think he is safe, Harry?"

Harry sighed softly, and bent his head down to lay a kiss on her temple. He wish he could tell her that the man she loved was coming back; that he could assure her that he was fine, and safe, and _alive_, but he couldn't. He could not lie to her.

"I hope he is, Hermione. I really hope he is."

Now was the time, that he noticed his beloved friend's tear stained face; the entire time she had been looking to the window she had been trying to conceal her tears, but she had broken. She was crying, silently. She looked Harry in the eyes, and turned her body around, sobbing into her best friend's chest; trying to let it all out. The boy just laid there, with his arms around her, making soft shushing sounds, and rubbing her back in circles; he was trying to be there for her God damn it!

Hermione just hanged on to his shirt and cried into his chest.

"I want him back, Harry. Make him…come back…to…me…"

She would plead, and Harry's heart could not stand it anymore; he could not take it anymore. He kept holding her, and whispering words of support to her, but he did not know what else to do; what else to attempt to make her stop crying, to at least make her crack a small smile.

"What can I do to stop the hurting, Hermione? Tell me."

He asked her; he was the one pleading now. He wanted to calm her, to stop her trembling, to silence her sobs.

As soon as the question left his lips, she looked up.

Her eyes were puffy and red; her nose was a bit pinkish, too. The girl sniffed, and decided to speak to her friend, but before she spoke out she laid her cheek against his chest; listening to the beat of his heart.

"I want to hear the rhythm of his heart. I want him here. Oh, God…Harry…I miss him."

She said as she started crying once again.

"He is the only one…that can make me stop..hur..ting."

She said in between sobs.

They suddenly heard the door down stairs open, and shut quickly.

Hermione's head shot up from Harry's chest, and she was off the bed instantly.

Her heart was beating fast, as if it was trying to escape the coldness of her body, trying to seek warmth. She slowly walked to the closed door and hesitated before reaching for the knob.

_Could it be him? Was he back?_

_Was it someone else who had come to bring the news that he was not coming back…?_

Her breath caught at that thought, and Harry was quickly up behind her, to hold her before she lost her footing. One of her hands had flown to cover her mouth as a sob escaped from her throat. The hand that still rested on the door knob twisted the cold metal handle and pulled the door opened. With Harry still behind her the hopeful girl walked towards the top of the flight of stairs, where she decided to stay.

Her eyes wandered down the stairs, in search of the man she was looking for, but it was too dark, except for a small amount of light that was coming from kitchen area.

They both walked down the stairs, and she basically ran into the kitchen, but it was not Severus she saw.

It was Moody; the man who had left with Severus two days ago.

"Where is Severus?"

She suddenly asked. Her hands started trembling again, and Harry reached for her hand, and she let him. Her nerves were going crazy. The Auror turned around, and looked at the Muggle-born witch straight in her brown eyes, but didn't say anything…

_They were supposed to be back together!_

_Please God, for all you want, please do not let him be here because of Severus. Tell me, tell me, that Severus is just late, that he is alive...just had to go and fetch something…_

_Oh, God, Jesus Christ, please_…

She let out a low whimper, and turned around, assaulting Harry's arms and nesting her head in the crook of his neck; sobbing. Harry embraced her; one arm around her shoulders, and the other surrounding her waist.

They had both taken the silence as their response; Severus would not be back.

Harry had not noticed his own tears; the small tear drops were accumulating at the edges of his eyes, and were trying to spill down his cheeks. The bravest man he would ever know, the strongest man he would ever meet, his best friend's _boyfriend_; gone, dead.

Neither of them had noticed the red headed pair at the end of the stairs behind them.

Molly was leaning against the railing, while Arthur had his arms around her waist. The couple was contemplating the scene quietly; slightly aware of what was happening. As soon as Molly had heard Hermione's sobs, she had wanted to come to the girl's aid, but Arthur had said that Harry would take care of it. That he would be the friend Hermione needed at the moment.

The main door suddenly opened, and shut loudly.

Hermione just kept hugging her friend, crying. She had lost hope; Severus was not coming. She just let herself be hugged and taken care by Harry.

The man that had just come in was soaking wet; the coat he was wearing felt heavy on his shoulders from how much rain drops it had absorbed. His onyx hair was dripping wet; plastered to his head, and neck. His face was even paler than normally because of how much cold and rain he had been exposed to, and there were some minor cuts to his brow and bottom lip, but besides that, he was unharmed. He was rid of his coat instantly and placed it on the coat hanger beside the door.

He took his shoes off, and pushed them with his feet to the corner of the door. From where he was standing he could hear soft sobs. He looked towards the kitchen and saw the Weasley couple at the end of the steps, staring at him, but they seemed like they weren't going to speak. They just stood quiet.

"Hermione, it's going to be okay, it will be alright, love."

He heard Potter's voice trying to console his Hermione. Now he knew what had happened.

"No…Harry, no…"

He walked towards the kitchen, with long, soft steps, and stood at the door frame; he was a bit shocked with the scene laid out in front of him. Potter was holding Hermione in his arms; he had his girl embraced in a tight hug.

The man felt a hand settle gently on his shoulder, and whipped his head around to see Mrs. Weasley smiling at him, and nodding towards Hermione; she was telling him to approach the woman who was waiting on him, a man that to her might never come back. He nodded at the women, and stepped forward. He leaned against the wall, facing the hugging friends. Severus had put his hands inside his pant's front pockets, and was just looking at them both; Harry's back to him, and Hermione's head hidden in the boy's neck. He could still hear her sobbing, but they dragged kind of distant, as if she was calming herself just a bit. The Potter boy was gently rocking the girl in his arms.

She was crying for him; Hermione Granger was crying for Severus Snape. She had missed him, like he had missed her.

He took a low and slow breath, and then spoke.

"Hermione Jean Granger, you better not be crying because of me…"

He told her softly; it almost seemed like a whisper.

Her head whipped up at the sound of his voice, and she looked over Harry's shoulder; who just stayed put, frozen in his place. There he stood, against the wall, a smirk well placed on his lips while he looked at her.

"_Severus_."

He nodded to her, and kept looking at her as she did the same. He looked almost the same as the last time she had seen him, except for the small cuts on his face, but she was happy that besides that he looked alright; he looked not so hurt.

Her face seemed tired. Had she slept at all? Had she been worrying for him this entire time? It seemed that way, and that made him think that she cared for him; like he cared so much about her.

He suddenly smiled at her, and stretched his arms out to her; he was beckoning her to come.

"What are you waiting for, sweet heart? I'm here. Come here, Hermione."

Forgetting all that were present, she ran to him and threw herself into his arms. The man holding her had not hesitated to hold her, he had just wrapped his arms around her, and was not intending on letting her go. Hermione's arms were tightly around his neck, while his arms were draped gently, but firmly around her waist.

The girls was laying kisses all over his face; on his nose, his cheeks, on top of his closed eye lids, everywhere, and Severus was loving every second of it.

He had missed her so much these past two days.

He noticed she was still crying, but now her tears seemed of happiness.

_Is it because I'm here_?

That's what he wanted to think; that she was happy to have him back.

"Oh, Severus; don't you ever leave me again."

He heard her ask as she reached on the tip of her toes and kissed his forehead; he smiled against her throat, where he placed a soft kiss. She came back down and searched his eyes.

"Do you hear me, Severus? Promise me?"

She demanded of him as she took his head in both of her hands. He just kept smiling, and covered her hands with his. He leaned down, and kissed her small, now puffy, red nose.

"I promise you, Hermione."

He told her before he dipped his head down even more, and claimed her lips in a soft, gentle kiss, while his fingers caressed the back of her hands that still rested on his face. She could taste the dried blood on his lip, but it did not matter; all that mattered was that he was there with her. Hermione sucked on his lower lip softly, wanting to rid him of the pain, if he had felt any at the time of the cut. Severus let her do it, it did not hurt him, and it made him feel better; like an overdue massage. He could feel her tears against his cheeks now; a hot and wet sensation that started to drip down their chins, and that's when he noticed that he was crying as well.

He smiled and pulled his lips away from hers.

"I'm glad you are safe, Severus."

Hermione whispered to him; she felt already calm now that she had him with her. The curly headed women knew everything would be alright once he was back in her arms.

"I'm glad you're with me, Hermione."

Severus told her, and kissed her once again.

Mrs. Weasley was just looking at them both happily, and was beckoning Harry to come to where they were and let the pair be; she did the same to Moody, who just grunted and walked to the main door, nodding to them, and taking his leave.

Harry was now beside Molly, and Arthur; the three just eyed the couple for a couple of more moments before Arthur escorted them both up stairs. If it was up to Molly, they would have stayed down stairs, staring in awe at Severus and Hermione, but Arthur had taken charge. Harry returned to his room, and took his place next to Ginny, wrapping his arms around the sleeping girl's form.

Molly and Arthur went to their room, and laid down; completely intending on sleeping.

Severus and Hermione…

After the group had taken their leave, Severus had dragged a willing Hermione to the couch, where he sat down, and brought her down in his lap sideways. He laid a soft kiss below her ear, and hugged her to him; his hands resting on her ribs, while hers were around his flat, hard belly. She put her head against his chest, under his chin, and just listened, smiling.

"Severus, I love you."

The dark headed man sighed happily, breathing in the scent of her hair.

"As do I, Hermione. "

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><p>Did you guys like it? I hope you did!(:<p>

Would you review? Please doo! It would make me extremely happy!

I'll return the love(:

Oh, and yeah, tell me if you guys would like me to make into something bigger, lol, if you like it? hehe. Thanks for reading!


	2. Explanations

_Couple of you wanted a second part to it. So, here it is!(:_

_Reviews are always welcomed!_

_A/N: I won nothing(: It's all J.K. Rowling's._

_Enjoy readers(: N thankyou..._

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><p><em>...<em>

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><p><em>A couple of years earlier<em>…

_Dear Diary,_

_It's February 14__th__, and Severus had promised me a day out._

_Doesn't that sound lovely?_

_A week has passed since our first kiss, but he just wants to take me out on the day that neither of us imagined we'd be celebrating; Valentine's Day. He's actually promised me dinner, and a quiet night down in his library, some butterbeer was also mentioned._

_He says he intends to make it a fun, and romantic night._

_Shall I believe him?_

_Of course I will!_

_Every time I see him he makes me smile, and my heart beats very fast, as if it's riding away on a horse rushing through the forbidden forest. I giggle as I think that, Diary. I imagine my Severus rushing through the wind rocking his armor. School girl crush? I don't think so Diary. Is it love? Possibly so._

_Severus is just so…Severus. I never really imagined falling for my professor, but I guess things like this happen._

_I haven't told Ron about us yet, but Harry knows; he's always known. Since Severus kissed me, Harry has known; he said it was written all over the my face when I returned to Gryffindor Tower that afternoon after helping the professor clean his storage. Severus knows Harry knows, and it's just funny to watch them when they're both with me; both want to have the final word, so that's when I come in._

_Harry has dismissed all thoughts of Severus really working for the Dark side, and I am glad for that; I just hope that at the end I am not the fool, and that he'll end up hurting me._

_Oh, Diary…_

_I think I've really fallen for Severus, but like I said, I never thought I would have fallen for my snarky, Potions Professor._

_Wish me luck on my Valentine's?_

_I'll write soon._

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><p>...<p>

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><p>"Severus, please…"<p>

_Breathe_

_Make it believable._

_Thump thump…_

His heart was beating too loud, he couldn't even hear himself breathe; nevertheless think. He raised his wand and said the words to the Killing Curse without any hesitation.

"_Avada Kedavra_."

The green light shot from his wand and hit the Headmaster square on his chest; the impulse so hard, the man was thrown over the edge of the Astronomy Tower.

_Thump thump…_

"No!"

The piercing scream still lingered in the air after a couple of seconds, and he looked to the side to see her frozen by the stairs. Her brown eyes said everything. She was afraid. The girl slowly shook her head as tears spilled down her cheeks, while she stumbled back down the stairs. He panicked as he saw her, his features dropping to sudden concern leaving behind the emotionless mask. No, he would not lose her.

"Hermione, wait!"

_Thump thump_…

He ran after her; forgetting all the death eaters that were present in the tower.

He went after her when she ran down the stair to the lower floors, where a battle had begun. Many hexes were directed at both of them; Severus was receiving those from the Order, and Hermione those of the death eaters, but she still ran while he deflected the jinxes and hexes for both of them.

She wasn't supposed to be there. She had supposed to stay in the castle to tend to Flitwick; that had been her distraction, so when he was back, she would receive him with open arms and they would get away. He had not wanted her to see any of this.

Severus followed her all the way out to Hagrid's hut, where she had stopped right in front of it to look up at the obscured sky.

The Dark Mark had conjured itself.

Hermione sobbed as she stared at the smoke ish sign flowing in the sky.

_Is this the end_?

Severus stood behind her, his wand put away. She turned around having heard his footsteps, fear in her eyes as she raised her wand to him.

"Hermione, wait; listen to me."

He breathed out, as his lower lip quivered slightly, and he shut his eyes. She had to know that he was hurting; that he did not want to lose her. He was in pain, but her response let him know that she was feeling the same.

"Why, Severus? How could you? We all trusted you, and you find it easy to betray us all?"

She asked as she shook her head, and gripped her wand harder. He knew that look on her face; it was the same she had give Weasley the evening he had left her and Harry for Lavender, and came back later that night to receive the hexing of his life in the Great Hall. She wanted to hex him, curse, jinx him so badly, her hand was twitching because of how hard she was gripping it.

"Hermione let me explain, please…"

He begged her in an honest, hurried whisper. Severus approached her, and stood mere inches away from her; how he long to touch her again now knowing that he could not do it ever again. He lifted his hand and reached out to touch her face, but his hand dropped as he was interrupted by some screams and that sickening laughter.

"Snape; he trusted you!"

_Yes, that's another person I need. Harry Potter._

"Hello, mudblood…"

Severus heard Bellatrix' sweet greeting before Hermione was thrown to the ground with a scream by a curse. Without having a chance to check on Hermione, he turned around to see Bella and the other death eaters dragging a lamented Draco with Potter trailing closely behind them.

Potter's faced was tearstained as it shined very wet by the moonlight; it was clear that he had not been told of the plan yet because if he had, he would not be acting like this.

"No, he belongs to the Dark Lord."

Severus said sternly as Bellatrix shot a curse at the idiot boy, but missed. The crazy, sickening witch inhaled disappointedly and turned to Hermione with a dark chuckle, but decided against it as she saw the set up for the perfect bon fire by the giant's hut. To protect Hermione from any further, he wordlessly aimed his wand at her still body, but was stopped when a curse almost hit him.

"Don't you dare hex her when she is already down! She loved you, Snape, how can you even think to do that, you coward?"

_Coward?_

Potter exclaimed heartbrokenly as he kept throwing curses at Severus, and the dark wizard tried to deflect them all, but stood his ground at the end, and jinxed the boy when he yelled.

"Sectumsempra!"

The boy went flying down the same as his wand, as Bellatrix shot _Incendio_ onto some logs by the hut, and danced around laughing nastily along with the other delinquents. While Potter was on the ground, looking shocked at Severus as he strolled up to him and looked down to his worthless stature.

"You dare use my own spell against me…?"

He spit out harshly at the boy, who looked at him confused, though still very angry. He had known the boy had gotten a hold of his book because Hermione had told him, but he found it unbelievable that the idiot would try the spells; no matter how stupid he believed Potter to be, but after what had happened to Draco, he guessed the boy just wanted to make him suffer.

"That's right, Potter. I am the Half Blood Prince."

The raven haired just stared at him, while he sniffled back the tears; shaking his head.

"Let's go."

And with that said he turned around, and as he left behind the other death eaters he charmed Hermione's body as he kept walking along the path to the gates. Her body welcomed the charm, absorbing the light greedily, and she seconds later the light was gone along with her body.

"No…"

Harry tried to protest but was too late; they were already gone.

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><p>...<p>

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><p>When she opened her eyes, she found herself laying in bed; Severus' bed, to be exact, but he wasn't there. Memories from the night, or was it still the same night, came rushing back to her, and she started shaking her head.<p>

_Please tell me it was just a nightmare._

She begged to herself as she swung her legs off the bed, and brought her body up to a sitting position. Her head stopped its motion as her eyes spotted a piece of parchment lying on the bedside table beneath the lamp. Hermione took a deep breath, and lean forward to take a look at it.

It was from Severus.

Her eyes started to sting slightly, as she felt them become invaded by her tears.

It had all happened. Severus had killed Albus Dumbledore.

She reached out to take the small note, and brought it up in front of her face.

_Come see me. Hermione, I can explain __**everything**_.

_I love you_

_The_ parchment was not signed, but she knew it was from him; it was his handwriting. She fell back on the bed with a loud sob, as she curled herself up into a ball, bringing her knees up to her chest and began crying.

_I don't want to see him. He thought, no, Severus thinks that after what his done he can just make me see reason? He killed the Headmaster. Oh, God. What was to him, if he killed the man that trusted and acted as a father to him? Was I just a game to him; was he going to kill me too? Were we just a lie_?

Hermione crumbled the note up in her hand, and picked her head up to look towards the door. It was closed.

She got off the bed, and walked to the door; it was not locked.

Tears were still streaming down her face at an unbelievable rate as she walked into his living room. The fire place was lit, and everything seemed the same as they had left it a day ago; except for the study, which was all cleaned out. She could not believe him.

Hermione threw the jumbled note into the fireplace, and watch with a cynic smile as it burned a brownish color, and turned into charcoal ashes.

She was losing it. The tears were blinding her; Severus' betrayal was blinding her.

Hermione was scared, and she was angry.

She turned away from the chimney, and made her way to the classroom door.

_I need to leave. I cannot stay here_.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a few screams once she was in front of the classroom door; she opened it and was met with chaos in the corridors. There were people running up and down the hallway; some frightened, like her, and some in a duel.

_Damn it._

She did not have her wand with her; Severus must have taken it.

_Yeah, that sounds like him. He just wanted me defenseless for when he came back; it would be a lot easier for him. I would be an easy kill, just like the poor Headmaster was_.

She wiped at her tears angrily before choosing which path to take away from this dreaded corridor; she decided on left, and ran. Just like she had ran from Severus a few hours ago, but the difference now was that no one was after her.

Hermione managed to run through the duels on harm. She had run through the entire castle without stopping, constantly panting; she had hoped to spot Severus, but he seemed to not be around. She made it all the way to the courtyard, were a group of people were standing. Hermione excused herself as she made her way through them to see what had happened, but was stopped by Minerva's hand.

That's when she saw Harry on the floor; weeping brokenly on to Albus Dumbledore's resting chest.

_Poor Harry; first his parents, then Sirius, now Dumbledore…_

People around them had their wands raised, in respect to the diseased man on the ground. She merely looked down, giving her respects and tried to pocket her hands; although, something was not letting her. That's when she felt her wand; she pulled it out, inspecting it, and when she found nothing wrong with it, she raised it like everyone else.

Why had he given it back to her? She wondered to herself.

Tears were still streaming down her face, now at a slower rate, as her heart raced angrily.

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><p>...<p>

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><p>He hadn't talked to Hermione ever since the night Dumbledore died.<p>

She refused to talk to him, to see him at all. He had written to her, had called on her to his office, had done everything he could, but she never answered or came, and he did not want to force her. Yes, he wanted to explain; to have her back with him. Dumbledore, having known of their relationship, had told Severus she could know, but Hermione did not want explanations. She did not want him, period.

She lived day by day in fear of him; of the man who killed the Headmaster, and had taken his place.

_Thump thump._

_Thump thump._

_Thump thump_…

It was extremely cold outside, but he was quite used of the frozen air hitting against his face because of all the times he had to stand vigil through the nights until early dawn. He had to admit; this was a lot better than standing before the Dark Lord, reporting himself with information.

_Sigh_

Severus seemed a bit underdressed for the chilly evening that was enunciating itself tonight. He had ditched and disregarded his teaching robes on his armchair after his research that evening, and had thrown on his old, worn-out, frock coat, and left in a hurry. Dumbledore had assigned him night watch since the beginning of term until all of the Dark Lords ministrations toned down a bit.

Plans were going out as they were expected.

The Dark Lord believed Albus Dumbledore to be dead, although he wasn't; the old man was to wise to let that happen, and Severus would not let him either.

The dark haired man was sitting on the floor of the Astronomy Tower, overlooking Hogwarts' ground, and some of the Forbidden Forest; as much of it as he could see. He still felt weird every time he set foot inside. Too many memories decided to rush in, and attack him.

The year was 1998; exactly a year since the Battle of the Astronomy Tower, as it was June 30th.

Severus appeared to be Headmaster of Hogwarts, but he wasn't. He did not want the job, and he had made it clear to Albus. He had gone along with the man's request of _killing_ him. Not many knew of what had really happened, except Minerva, Moody, Kingsley, and Mr. Harry Bloody Potter.

Of course, the boy _had_ to know; otherwise the plan would have been useless, and Severus would've been dead by now and Potter would have been the one to kill him.

So, by name he was the Headmaster, Minerva had remained Deputy, the Carrows were in high positions as Prefects; students weren't allowed the benefit anymore. Most of the time, Severus was not seen by anyone; except only by Minerva, and Dumbledore himself of course. Albus hid in the lower part of the castle, where no one ever suspected anything and Severus had placed many protective wards.

Now, the real question was…how had they done it? How had they gotten the Dark Lord, and his fellow death eaters, to believe such a lie so perfectly?

_Smirk_

An illusion was the answer, of course.

Polyjuice does wonders, if you ask him. By giving the sacrifice large amounts of it, that made the potion last very long indeed; they had given him so much that the potion had lasted for 18 hours. But who had been willing to sacrifice himself for Albus Dumbledore? Old, Argus Filch, and everybody was grateful for the brave man's sacrifice.

Severus wished Hermione would had let him explain, but she never did. He hated the way she always flinched at his name, or when he had tried to talk to her that dreadful night. He didn't want her to flinch, or grimace every time he was brought up; he wanted her to smile. He wanted to see the love in her eyes, just like he had always seen them.

He missed her.

Severus was looking along the forest's first line of trees when a bit of movement caught his eyes. His black eyes narrowed as he leaned forward on the railing to have a closer look. It had come from the far corner of the castle and seemed to be going towards the forest. It was a hooded figure; running across the school grounds in quite the rush.

_So much for a calm night…_

_If it was one of the Carrows, he would see to them…_

_Sigh_

If he walked all the way down there, he would never reach it.

_I guess this is one of those advantages that I should appreciate to have learned from __**him**__._

He evaporated into a cloud of smoke, and swirled silently down onto the grounds. Once his feet hit the ground, he silently began quickly striding towards the robed figure, which had now started walking a lot slower.

By the movement of her hips, Severus was pretty sure it was a woman.

Was it McGonagall or the female Carrow?

It couldn't be her; this woman was not tall enough to be the Transfiguration Professor or the Carrow woman.

She turned around to make sure that no one was following, and once she saw Severus she bolted, as he did the same.

_Hermione_?

Her wand instantly slipped down her sleeve, and before he could even react she was throwing hexes at him; some of them he recognized and others he had never seen before; so, he assumed they were of her own creation. Although, he deflected all of them, she still kept throwing them at him; never stopping. He growled, tired of her ministrations and of trying to attack him.

_Forgive me, Hermione, but this has to stop_.

Severus closed his eyes, and raised his wand before she could throw one more hex at him; he swished it downwards, and then pushed forward. She fell to ground with a scream the moment he did that, and by the time she tried to get up, he was standing beside her collapsed form; looking down at her. Her hood was still up, but he knew those eyes. He knew that face, and those curls that had escaped the shelter of the hood. Her brown orbs looked frightened; she still had her wand gripped in her hand, but seeing as Severus had his pointed at her, it would be stupid to point it at him when clearly she was the one of the ground almost defenseless.

The girl was hugging herself, Severus noticed, her arms were wrapped around herself. Maybe because of the cold; he himself was still a bit cold, but the run had warmed him up a bit. He wanted to hold her to him, and not let go; at least, for a while. Behind the fright in her eyes, he swore he saw a flicker of defiance in them, and he was only proven right when she spoke in a strained and shaky voice.

_Thump thump…_

_Thump thump…_

"Do it, you coward…"

She hissed at him, her hood falling and revealing herself. It was his Hermione Granger. Severus raised an eyebrow at her, quite confused really; he really thought Potter would have spilled the beans quicker than one could say . He had to admit; he was a bit hurt by her words. They had stung.

"What exactly do you want me to do?"

He asked her as he crouched beside her to inspect her leg; she flinched and tried to pull away, but he acted faster, taking her wand away just in case and held her legs in place; right in front of his crouched knees.

"Kill me."

She spit the words out to him harshly as she started struggling. She desperately wanted to pull away, but he didn't let her.

_Severus, please, let me go! Please._

He held her in place, and spoke softly. He wanted her to listen to him, and not be afraid of him. He would never hurt her for God's sake, but if she thought that little of him, he would play her little game just for once.

"Really, Hermione? Why would I want to kill you, do you believe yourself that important to me for me to bathe my hands in your blood?"

He now asked her as his hands started pulling down her blood, soaked stockings, and taking off her shoes. She was sitting up now, her arms still around herself, and she had stopped struggling with him, which he was grateful for.

_So, I hadn't meant anything to him, huh? He just said it himself. I was not important to him._

He set himself on the ground in front of her, sitting on his legs, and brought hers up on his thigh. Hermione made a soft hissing sound as he looked at her cuts.

He regretted using the slicing charm now. He had hurt her too much; he had only wanted her to stop hexing him.

When he looked up, he took a closer look at her lovely face; how much he had missed her. The wind was blowing on her curls, so they seem to blend in with the wind, swirling like flying, autumn leaves and her cheeks were red, along with her nose and she was…crying?

_No, no. Hermione, stop crying, love. Stop it, Hermione_. _Don't us back to that night, Sweetheart_.

He pointed his wand at her, and Hermione closed her eyes, waiting for the cold to take her entirely, but death never came; only the feeling of warmth welcomed itself in to her body, and all trace of ice had left. She looked at the man that had lowered his wand, and had gone back to checking her wounds.

She saw him lean his head down, and place his mouth on her knees; depositing a soft kiss. She did not realize that she held her breath.

_Sigh_

She seemed a bit shocked at this, and stopped moving, but he seemed happy that she had not moved away from him_._

"Why aren't you going to kill me?"

She dared ask, but he did not look up at her; he just kept looking at her cuts while he started reciting hush words. Severus' hands came in contact with her skin, and she held her breath, but she did not know why. Seconds later, she witnessed how the area of sliced flesh started closing itself leaving behind no scars, only a bit of redness. She took a deep breath, and moved forward, bringing her hands down to her legs as if to prove to herself that what he had done was real. After tracing her lower legs, she hesitated to ask.

"Why? I don't understand…"

"Really, Hermione; you don't?"

He inquired in disbelief. The girl just bit her lip and looked down.

"I may be a cold man, and you know as much as that, but you know the extent for which I care about you…For which I lo…"

Severus stopped talking; cutting himself off.

_No, she knew how he felt for her. _

He got up off the ground, and pocketed his wand. Severus extended his hand down to her, waiting for her to take it, so he could help her up. Hermione just looked at him now, and argued with herself whether or not she should take his offering. He might have killed Dumbledore, but he was still the man she had trusted all this time. He had been the one who had protected her, who had cared for her and loved her. He had been the man who had opened his heart to her, and she had to him.

_Thump thump…_

_Thump thump…_

_Thump thump…_

Severus Snape had killed Dumbledore, had he not?

So, would he kill her?

Hermione shook her head, and reached up to take his hand. Severus pulled her up, and then started to pat on her robes to get rid of the chopped off, autumn leaves from the ground. They were still holding hands, and that only brought memories to Hermione.

Would that man still be there? Would, Severus still be there? The charming, gentle man, who she had fallen in love with so long ago; who had said and demonstrated to love her.

She was afraid to believe in that again.

Afraid that he would betray her again, just like he had betrayed her when he had killed Dumbledore, but had he really killed him? Of course he did, you saw him.

"Severus…"

Thump thump…

He looked down at her, and waited for her to keep speaking, and when she did; what came out of her mouth surprised him very.

"Did you kill Albus Dumbledore?"

Hermione asked him as she brought a trembling hand forward to grasp his other hand. Severus let her do it; for him this was progress. This was better than her running off again and him to seeing her for another year.

Her hands felt the same; the same softness that he had remembered holding, and he was happy that she was here with him now. Severus pulled her towards him by her hands, until she was completely in front of him. Hermione just seemed to let him do as he pleased.

_But if you try something, Severus…_

_Thump thump…_

_Thump thump…_

He ran his hands up her wrists, trailing up her arms, until he reached her neck.

She gulped.

They were too close now; too close.

"Don't be afraid, Hermione. It's just me. Please."

He told her, as he moved one of his hands higher to her cheek, where he let it rest; cupping her cheek gently. Hermione gasped, and a tear rolled down her cheek; accumulating at the top of his finger. Severus closed the distance between them as he lean down to kiss her forehead and she closed her eyes more tears streaming down.

"Stop crying; Hermione, love. I would never hurt you…"

_Never._

_Thump thump…_

_Thump thump…_

_Thump thump…_

_It's now or never, Severus._

He told himself as he gently caught her by the chin, and made her look up at him. Her brown orbs were glassy looking, and small tears were cut up on the edge of her eyes, wanting to roll down her cheeks until they dried away with the cold.

When he was sure he had her attention, he leaned down, and she felt her breath cut off as she understood what he was about to do.

_Do I let him_?

Hermione felt his soft, hot breath against her upper lip, and before she could breathe in, he was on her lips.

Severus' mouth moved softly over hers; he was controlling himself. After a year away, he would not scare her way with a hungry kiss.

_I'm barely getting her back_.

She seemed to relax under his arms, and moved closer into him; her hands finding their way to rest at his waist as his still were up on her face. Severus smiled against her lips, feeling as if nothing would bring down his happiness. He gently cut on to her lower lip with his teeth, and she gasped once again. He let her lip go, but a second later he was claiming them again; his tongue lingering on her lower lip, as if wanting access, but merely just caressing her mouth.

_I've missed you so much_. She heard herself think.

He pulled his mouth away from hers, grasping for air as she did the same. They were still holding each other; neither of them wanting to let go. They felt so warm in each other's arms, it was as if the cold was gone, and summer had arrived. Severus removed his hands from her face, and she opened her eyes. He moved his hands down her body to rest at the small of her back.

She made to move away; Severus' guessed that it was because something had dawned on her, but he didn't let her go. He had to tell her; now. Hermione put her arms in between them, and started pushing on him; wanting him away.

"Hermione…"

"No, Severus, stop. Let go of me."

She said to him nervously, proving to Severus that she was afraid, but he was not going to give in.

"Hermione, stop, please. I did not kill him."

He told her in a whisper as he caught her by the wrists with one of his hands as his other one still rested in the small of her back. She just looked at him, and started shaking her head frantically.

"Hermione, I didn't do it."

He said as he held her eyes; begging her to notice the sincerity in his.

Hermione saw it.

But part of her could not believe it; she knew what she saw that night.

"Severus, don't lie to me, please."

The man brought her hands up to his lips with the one he was holding her with and kissed her fingers gently. Hermione looked at him in awe; he had started to cry. Severus Snape did not cry. She broke her hands away from his grip, and enveloped him into a hug; her arms flying up to his neck. He put his other arms around her, and they held each other in a crushing, strong hug.

"I would never lie to you, Hermione Granger."

"I'm sorry, Severus."

She whispered to him, as she pressed her face into his chest listening to his heartbeat.

"Let me explain things."

_Thump thump…_

_Thump thump…_

_Thump thump…._

"I'm listening, sweetheart."

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><p>Should this conclude Rhythms of the Heart?(:<br>Lol. Read & Review, pleaseee!


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